My Co-renting Lady Boss
Chapter 371 - 0371: The Grand Banquet of the Zhou Family

Chapter 371: Chapter 0371: The Grand Banquet of the Zhou Family

Tang Ming didn’t linger at the Ma Family residence, hailing a taxi back to school quickly, then found a secluded place to begin his cultivation, afraid to return home in order to protect Liu Mengting, he could only practice near the school.

This time, having devoured Ma Tong’s poison, Tang Ming’s cultivation once again received an enhancement.

Grateful for Tang Ming’s life-saving grace, the entire Ma Family was no longer fearful of Tang Ming, instead willingly befriending him.

After Ma Tong’s recovery, he immediately ordered Ma Benyue to prepare a generous gift, waiting for the Zhou Family Young Master’s succession banquet to present it.

In the following days, Tang Ming’s life returned to tranquility, accompanying Liu Mengting and Li Xiaoli to school every day, enduring both girls’ torment and disdain all day long, while Zhou Dafu was so busy he didn’t even attend classes.

While the Zhou Family was preoccupied with the Young Master’s succession banquet, various powers in Songlan City were restless.

The Zhou Family was a Martial Arts Family, a massive entity with immense interests. Now that everyone knew the Zhou patriarch was failing, various factions were eager to carve up the Zhou Family piece of the pie, and some had already received considerable benefits from the hands of the brothers Zhou Xianren and Zhou Xiande, but still eagerly anticipated the downfall of the Zhou Family.

Although many wished to carve up the cake, no one acted rashly, because, up until now, no one could be certain if the news of the Zhou patriarch’s critical illness was true. So everyone was observing, guessing whether the old man was truly dying, whether the Zhou Family was really in decline.

Just as undercurrents flowed in Songlan City, the Zhou Family surprised everyone by sending out invitations, ostensibly for Zhou Dafu’s ceremony to inherit the role of Zhou Family Young Master.

It was still at the Jun Tianhao Hotel, Songlan City’s top luxury venue, where the old Zhou patriarch had his birthday banquet, which marked the beginning of the Zhou Family’s decline.

Today, the Zhou Family once again set up a grand banquet here, shining bright with guests, but alas...

This time the scale of the banquet was clearly more modest than at the old patriarch’s birthday, with many family powers merely sending representatives to attend, and many business families that once relied on the Zhou Family absent, as they, having experienced the turmoil of Zhou Xianren and Zhou Xiande liquidating assets, understood the current state of the Zhou Family better than outsiders.

Despite the reduced scale, the banquet hall still welcomed many guests. Aside from those families eager to distance themselves from the Zhou Family, representatives from other major powers attended, mainly to probe the Zhou Family’s current strengths and weaknesses.

When entering the venue, many guests carried an indifferent attitude towards everyone from the Zhou Family. Even when faced with Zhou Xianyi and Zhou Dafu coming forward to pay their respects, these people maintained a nonchalant demeanor.

Zhou Xianyi and Zhou Dafu had anticipated this and didn’t take it too much to heart, for they, father and son, were only focused on a table in the corner of the banquet hall.

Tang Ming, Liu Mengting, Li Xiaoli, Chen Cang, and the Ma siblings sat at a table, chatting about various topics.

Especially Chen Cang and Ma Gangqiang, who had once been school tyrants, were now all Tang Ming’s subordinates, sharing a sense of commiseration from their similar misfortunes.

Chen Cang commented on Ma Gangqiang’s timely change of ways, not too late.

Ma Gangqiang, on the other hand, envied Chen Cang for turning back earlier, avoiding much suffering, eventually leading both men to sit together, drinking from their cups, almost on the brink of tears.

"What’s up with those two guys, eh?" Li Xiaoli looked puzzled at Ma Gangqiang and Chen Cang, inquiringly asking:

"They used to be school tyrants, very bad, eh, how come they are so well-behaved now?"

"I’m not sure, as long as that fly doesn’t bother me like before, I’m quite happy!"

Liu Mengting smiled contently.

"Ma Gangjian, why haven’t An Tian and Old Master An come?"

Tang Ming looked towards Ma Gangjian and asked with curiosity.

"Don’t mention it, An Tian and his grandfather left on the very day, defeated both in martial arts and in medical skills, feeling a loss of face, so despite my grandfather’s efforts to persuade them, they insisted on leaving,"

Ma Gangjian said bitterly, even characters like An Tian and his grandfather had returned with their tails between their legs after facing Tang Ming—who else could put Tang Ming in his place now!

"It’s good that they left. I hope he comes across more patients that he can’t cure from their poison for me when he goes back."

Tang Ming laughed and then dropped the subject.

"Brother Tang Ming, look quick, today’s fatty is so handsome."

Li Xiaoli suddenly nudged Tang Ming’s arm and pointed at Zhou Dafu, who was bursting with energy behind Zhou Xianyi, exclaiming loudly.

"Indeed very handsome, I wonder if Moli, that woman, seeing fatty now, will regret it to death." Tang Ming smiled and nodded.

"Do we need to say it? That woman will definitely rue the day and probably would beg on her knees for fatty’s forgiveness!"

Li Xiaoli wickedly guessed.

"Why does the atmosphere feel a bit off today?" Liu Mengting frowned slightly and after taking a look around, said with confusion:

"Though a lot of people have come, the way these guests look at the Zhou family members, it’s quite bizarre, as if they’re full of mockery and contempt?"

"These bastards are all here to kick us when we’re down, not a single one of them could hold back their farts," Ma Gangjian said with a cold smile, turning to Tang Ming:

"Young Master Tang, rest assured, now that the Ma Family and Zhou Family stand on the same front, we will certainly shock those fair-weather friends shortly."

"Oh? What preparations has the Ma Family made?"

Tang Ming grew interested; he truly had no idea what preparations the Ma Family had made for today.

"Don’t worry, Young Master Tang, you’ll find out soon enough!" Ma Gangjian said with a smug smile, playing coy.

Today Zhou Dafu was beaming, once an illegitimate child of the Zhou Family without the right to even stay at their home, and now he had become the primary successor and the only young master of the Zhou Family—a transformation that one only sees in novels, but it was actually happening to him.

Zhou Xianyi also felt liberated, for years he had been bullied by his elder brothers in the Zhou Family, but now he had become the family head and would no longer have to act subservient—a promotion that nearly moved him to tears.

Zhou Dafu and Zhou Xianyi both knew that all of this was thanks to Tang Ming, so they didn’t care about the other guests’ reactions. The father and son had made up their minds to cling to Tang Ming; even if it meant making an enemy of the entire Songlan City, they were willing to take the risk.

As time passed, more and more guests arrived, and those with ulterior motives became restless.

"What’s the deal with the banquet, when is it going to start? We’ve been waiting for half an hour."

"The Zhou Family is finished, and yet they still put on such airs, they really don’t take us seriously at all."

"A sinking ship still has three thousand nails, I suppose there should at least be something tasty at this Zhou Family’s banquet, right?"

"Haha, I’m here for the food too. As for that bullshit about the young master’s succession, that’s pure nonsense. Look at those who’ve turned up today, there’s not a single heavyweight in sight!"